Malaysian Role-Playing Games!

Hello, friends! I was so annoyed by the results of Wednesday’s World Cup game that I wound up finally doing a (recorded) Sennelier Monday Live for the first time in months. I semi-ironically chose a Christmas Bauble to paint in oil pastels and am genuinely pleased to see that I haven’t lost all my skills, especially since I only spent about an hour on this:

I did the underpainting in my trusty Holbeins before coming in with Sennelier oil pastels to finish. It’s all done on Sennelier Pastel Card, which I’ve found is really extraordinary in helping me finish my works without the unintended white stippling that is common to the medium when using less suitable surfaces.

I also discovered a really great game that combines my love of art with my love of fantasy with my love of birds! Nipfrutican’s Bird Is Dragon is a gem of a solo game where you get to creatively journal your birdwatching by rolling on a random table to see how to depict the bird you spotted as a dino— I mean, dragon. It put me to mind of this excellent comic:

Relatedly, my full review of A4 2B D6 Vol 1, Issue 1 is up, so take a peek then grab your copy of this Malaysian magazine covering all things role-playing games. Also, if you are an ENNIES voter, please consider voting for Munkao’s Tragedy At Zaya’s Theatre, which has been nominated for Best Short Form Adventure. I literally loled at the name of the adventuring guild he made up for his latest adventure, The Silver Spoon Boys, because the Awat Guild Of Happenings hits different for someone who spent two long, formative years in the north of Malaysia (this is a very niche joke, please don’t ask me to explain it, but if hang ada kawan orang Kedah, pi tanya diorang.)

I didn’t have time to play any games myself, unless you count the FIFA Panini Collection app. I’m doing much better in completing my virtual team than my actual one, tho in my defense there are like 900+ stickers to collect in the physical book. If you’d like to join my team and do some trades before the season closes, my Team Women Know Ball has Team-Id: 2291913 with Password: WorldCup2026 (you can also just click on the link.)

On the plus side, I did relatively well on my reading this week! I really enjoyed Naomi Novik’s The Summer War, which is my first Novik (I know right!) and my penultimate read for the Hugos 2026 Award slate for Best Novella. I have really complicated feelings about the characters but I’m pleased with how the author dealt with and in some cases redeemed them, and with the fairy tale-esque story overall. Essentially, a pre-teen girl accidentally curses her beloved older brother when she comes into her powers. Finding a way to lift the curse might also involve finally putting an end to the war that’s plagued her people for decades. So much is covered in a relatively short amount of pages, and I definitely wanted more of the universe when I was done.

I also enjoyed Luke Dumas’ brutally honest and incredibly messy Nothing Tastes As Good. This horror-thriller asks what lengths you would go to in order to be considered conventionally attractive, as a psychologically scarred young man embarks on a drug trial for a weight loss medication that might be slowly turning him into a monster.

Alright, I’ve been absolutely wrecked health-wise this week, but we did rule out two more issues and hopefully will figure out more next week. See you in six, friends!

Currently Playing (Music): Haydn’s 99th Symphony; my Declan Rice and 2026 Energy playlists; The Magnus Archives; BTS’ Arirang; Madonna’s Confessions II; Public Enemy’s Yo! Bum Rush The Show and It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back; Oasis’ Wonderwall (It’s Coming Home!)(update: It’s not Coming Home D:)

Currently Playing (Games): Metazooa by Trainwreck Labs; Learned League trivia; NYT Connections & Wordle; Gremco Industries’ Parseword; Irox Games’ Bongo Cat; Greg Stafford’s Pendragon; Larian Studio’s Baldur’s Gate 3.

Currently Reading/Writing (Games): Ghosts Of Saltmarsh.

Currently Reading or Just Read (Books): The Odyssey: A Graphic Novel by Gareth Hinds; The Summer War by Naomi Novik; Nothing Tastes As Good As by Luke Dumas; The Underwearwolf by Gideon Sterer & Charles Santoso; If We Cannot Go At The Speed Of Light by Kim Cho-yeop; Savvy Summers And The Po’Boy Perils by Sandra Jackson-Opoku.